More

Marvel Donates $1+ Million to Children's Charities for 10th Anniversary

Marvel Studios has donated a total of $1.25 million to both Make-A-Wish and Starlight Children's Foundation to celebrate their 10th anniversary. Even by their own incredibly high standards of success, Marvel Studios are currently on a hot streak. Fresh from the critically acclaimed, record-breaking Black Panther, the studio are now riding on a wave of cold, hard cash due to the success of their mammoth franchise crossover, Avengers: Infinity War - a film that has fundamentally changed the landscape of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Never ones to rest on their laurels, Marvel Studios have already begun the promotional campaign for their next release, Ant-Man and The Wasp.

The consistent big screen success of the MCU and Marvel Studios' affiliation with Disney have turned the company into a genuine corporate juggernaut and, as Marvel knows all too well, with great power (money) comes great responsibility (charity work). Marvel has been increasingly involved in working with children's charities over the years, for example granting seriously ill children the chance to visit sets and meet actors via the Make-A-Wish foundation. Famously, a Make-A-Wish kid was even responsible for Thor's "friend from work" gag in Thor: Ragnarok.

Now hitting their 10th birthday, Marvel Studios has decided to celebrate by upping their charity game and donating $1.25 million to two children's charities. Marvel Studios: Hero Acts will be granting $800,000 to Make-A-Wish and $450,000 to Starlight Children's Foundation. The announcement was celebrated with actors Chris Evans and Tom Holland hosting special screenings of Infinity War in New York and Los Angeles. A press release revealed that Starlight would be using the cash to produce over 26,000 special hospital gowns for children that are adorned with Marvel Super Heroes and a custom Avengers comic is being added to Disney's hospital care packages. Marvel Studios' President, Kevin Feige, said of the donations:

“We are proud to donate to Make-A-Wish and Starlight Children’s Foundation. It is an honor to make a meaningful contribution to these two organizations that continually strive to enhance the lives of seriously ill children.”

Much to the chagrin of people like James Cameron, the world of cinema is dominated by superhero movies at present and with so much riding on each release and fans of all ages deeply invested in the characters and stories, it's easy to get caught up in taking the whole genre a little too seriously sometimes. However, seeing the effect superheroes can have in raising the spirits of seriously ill children puts things starkly into perspective, providing a reminder of exactly what these characters can really do.

Of course, a cynic might suggest that any company that openly engages in charitable endeavors is only doing so for marketing and public relations purposes but whether this is the case or not, the bottom line remains that a great deal of money is being used to do a great deal of good for those who need it the most. For that, Marvel Studios can only be commended.